By Bill O’Toole Myanmar Times November 03, 2014 In the lead-up to the 2010 general election, the Union Solidarity and Development Party faced a problem in Rakhine State. A Muslim woman sits in front of temporary shelters in Sittwe township, Rakhine State. (Ko Taik/The Myanmar Times) Replicating their strategy elsewhere in the country, they sought to recruit influential locals to stand as candidates in the election, which was touted by the military as a key step in the nation’s road to democracy. However, they ran into well-organised opposition from the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party. Though established just a few months earlier, following the release of election laws in March, the RNDP had managed to generate significant local support by tapping into widespread animosity toward the central government from ethnic Rakhine. The USDP needed allies in the region. Controversially, they turned to the Rohingya. “USDP approached us, they said we should pa